Watch as crane hoists new granny flat into homeowners’ backyard

In the end, there was little doubt the Villa Park job would come off without a hitch.

After all, cranes install prefab homes all the time. And even if things did go wrong, operators had $10 million in liability insurance to cover any damage.

Still, Nicola Angiuli was nervous as the giant crane prepared to hoist a 1,080-square-foot manufactured home into the air one section at a time, rotate it into position while hovering above his four-bedroom house, then lower it into the backyard inches from the garage and eight feet from the pool.

What if the tethers slipped? What if the manufactured home crashed through Angiuli’s roof?

“Wouldn’t you be nervous?” Angiuli asked. “They’re going to crane the house over the main house.”

Neighbors along Via Bravo were warned in advance the cul-de-sac would be shut down. Early the next day, two tractor-trailers arrived, each hauling half of the granny flat. They parked in the center of Lemon Street as workers readied the site for the main act. A Grove GMK5240 all-terrain crane pulled onto the front lawn. Stabilizing arms were extended to keep the crane upright.

Then the first trailer backed onto Via Bravo. A frame with straps hovered above it as workers attached the manufactured home to the crane. The home lifted a foot off the ground so workers could remove the wheels and the hitch. The signal was given, and the first section rose into the air, flew over the main house as the crane swiveled clockwise, then lowered onto its new foundation. Workers removed the garage’s rain gutter after realizing the eaves stuck out too far.

The act was repeated an hour later, and suddenly, a new granny flat stood where there once was open ground.